Truths
by Durbe the Barian
Summary: After Satoshi fails to defeat Dark, he meets Risa Harada. There, Krad reveals the truths that Satoshi has been struggling with for so long. With Satoshi's life hanging by a thread, can he really be saved? Or does he actually have a chance at life? (Sorry. Nasty summary.)
1. Chapter 1

**D.T.B: This is my very first DNAngel fanfiction. Please keep the flames to a minimum if you would be so kind. Yukiru Sugisaki has been lazy as of late and I, like many other fans, have grown totally annoyed. Please enjoy. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own DNAngel. If I did, it'd be done already.**

* * *

KRAD'S VOICE – BOLD ITALIC

NORMAL VOICE – UNCHANGED

DARK'S VOICE – ITALIC

PAST MOMENTS – BOLD

* * *

Chapter One

Risa and Krad

* * *

Risa was angry. She had been sitting at the dance, waiting patiently for her sister, Riku, and her boyfriend, Daisuke Niwa. She didn't know about the small fight that Daisuke had just endured with Satoshi. She didn't know about the curse of the Hikaris and the Niwas. She didn't know any of this. All she did know was that her sister and her boyfriend were late. And she was sick and tired of waiting for them.

She walked outside with a stomp in her step, her dress's skirt pulled up to her knees and held firmly in her slender fingers. She fully intended to lecture Daisuke on how it was rude to keep a woman waiting. But she stopped when she saw a silhouette walking slowly away from the dance. Her curiosity was her strongest weapon, but also her greatest weakness. Although she was fuming because of Daisuke, she was curious about this person. After all, he might be Dark!

"Dark-san?" she asked, nearly breaking out into a run to reach the figure.

She had been in love with the famous kaito, bordering on near-obsession, since she had seen him the first time on TV. And just recently, she had been saved by the thief after nearly falling off of a tower. "Dark-san, is that you?" she asked again.

She had finally reached the figure and hugged him with joy. The squeal in her voice was as obvious as her hair flailing around her face.

The figure remained motionless for a moment. Then her happiness faded. The figured was not wearing the traditional black that Dark so often wore. He was wearing a long, white trench coat with a fancy design on the sleeves. And his hair wasn't the lovely purple. It was azure blue. He was not Dark at all. "Hiwatari-kun," she said softly.

Satoshi Hiwatari turned around slowly. His face was more exhausted than usual, which was weird because only an hour ago, he was no different than he usually was; serious and emotionless. Not one kid in the school ever caught him with any other expression.

Satoshi had long since kept quiet since Risa had wrapped her arms around his chest. "Harada-san?" he finally asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, nothing!" Risa said, quickly letting Satoshi go, a blush growing on her face. "I just thought you were Dark-san! Sorry!"

The name "Dark" seemed to strike a nerve in the young genius. But again, Risa didn't notice this. She was always so oblivious when it came to anything that wasn't Dark. And she kept on ranting about how she had mistook Satoshi for Dark. "You're just as tall as him and the lighting made you look so mysterious."

He finally snapped. "Harada-san," he growled. "Is Dark all you ever talk about?"

Risa stopped and froze. It was unlike Satoshi to speak up like that. On one occasion, he had saved her after falling into a trap in the museum. No different from now, she jabbered on about Dark until a rope ladder was thrown to them and allowed their escape. He never once seemed angry in her presence. At least, not like that. She then noticed that Satoshi was rubbing his head. "I'm sorry, Hiwatari-kun," she said softly. "Do you have a headache?"

Satoshi's hand covered his face, but when Risa had pulled it away, she found to her horror that Satoshi's eyes were bright gold whereas before they were their usual cobalt blue. "_**You are such a fool, little girl,"**_ Satoshi said, hurting her even more.

His voice sent a shiver up Risa's spine. Usually, he was reserved and silent. But now a thick accent was heavy in his voice, and it was slightly higher, almost like he was someone else now. Was he?

"Hiwatari-kun?" Risa choked. Her right hand was covering her mouth for fear that her heart was going to jump out of it.

"_**Don't call me that again, **__Harada-san."_ The way he said her name, he was like a snake all set to eat its prey whole.

* * *

(Cue Flashback)

**Satoshi's hand had been cut by his father through the use of a knife or piece of glass. Kei Hiwatari, his adoptive father, had placed another work of Hikari art in his bloody hands. "Satoshi," Kei had said. "I can't afford to lose to you." **

**Satoshi was visibly frightened by his father's words, but was unable to act because he felt a familiar feeling burning inside him like a bonfire. Krad was trying to escape him. **

**He vaguely remembered attempting to fight Krad, and failing. All that he remembered after that was leaning against Daisuke, begging him to change into Dark, although he couldn't remember as to why he wanted that. After he heard Daisuke refuse, everything went black again.**

**(**Ending Flashback)

* * *

Now Satoshi was waking up in a darkened room, surrounded by an egg-like shell. He couldn't see anything, though he wasn't sure whether or not it was because he didn't have his glasses (Which he didn't actually need) or because Krad didn't want him to see anything. After thinking for a while, he decided it was because of the latter.

_**"**__**You are such a fool, little girl,**_" Krad said.

Speak of the devil. (Pun intended.) Unfortunately for Krad, Satoshi's ears were still in working condition.

"Hiwatari-kun?" Risa choked.

Satoshi instantly recognized the voice of the younger twin, Risa Harada. He had heard her almost every day, mainly discussing things about Dark, especially recently. Ever since "Dark" had saved her from certain death, it was all she could do to remain quiet about it for longer than five minutes when classes were not in session. Wonder how she would react if she figured out that the person who saved her was actually Satoshi himself? She'd probably just scream at him about how "he shouldn't go and insult Dark-san" and how "he's the coolest person in the whole world and didn't deserve it."

Ha.

_**"**__**Don't call me that again, **__Harada-san__**," **_he heard Krad say.

He could tell from his tone of voice that Krad was still irritated about not being able to kill Dark. And he was about to take it out on the one girl who simply can't stop talking about him.

Satoshi was frightened, although he didn't know why. Was it because Krad was threatening Risa? Ridiculous. He never once felt anything apart from friendship for her. Unless you can count the time when he saved her life... No! He couldn't think like that. True, his chest did feel warm, but that could have been for any reason at all. Just not her.

It was crazy. Totally insane!

* * *

Krad was looking at Risa with hate in his eyes. Even though he still looked like the blue-eyed prodigy, Risa could tell that this was not Satoshi who she was looking at. A smirk was plastered onto his face that made him look insane. His now golden eyes were narrow and burning into her skin. Satoshi wasn't stand in front of her anymore. The only question in her mind was WHO she was looking at.

Risa shivered. Krad's gaze was freezing her from the inside out. And he wasn't about to start letting up. "_**Tell me, mademoiselle, are you always such a talker?"**_

"What do you mean, Hiwatari-kun?" Risa asked, her voice trembling from his question.

"_**Don't get me started," **_Krad snapped. The anger on his face was not something Satoshi would ever have. Unless his life depended on it, that is. "_**Lately, that is the only thing that is on your lips. Dark-san this, and Dark-san that. You've turned a blind eye on those who's feelings are easier to read than those of Dark Mousy.**_"

Risa couldn't believe her ears. Frankly, Satoshi couldn't either. That total jerk!

"What are you talking about, Hiwatari-kun?!" Risa nearly screamed.

"Krad, don't you dare!" Satoshi screamed inside Krad's head. It made no difference, but he had to. Krad was about to shoot his mouth off. Of all the times for Krad to be honest!

"_**First, there is Daisuke Niwa,**_" Krad began. (Nothing Satoshi said could stop him. If anything, it made him want to keep going.) "_**You didn't care about him when he said he loved you. My Tamer heard your little talk with your friends prior to Dark Mousy's reappearance.**_" His voice switched to mocking-mode. "_**If someone wants to go out with me, he has to be really hot.**_" He had mimicked her to perfection, so much so that it was creepy. "_**And then you even ignored Riku, your own twin sister. She clearly showed her concern for you, but you wouldn't even begin to hear her pleas. And then there's one more..."**_

"KRAD!"

"What are you talking about?" Risa asked again. This time when she was serious. Silently, she thought to herself that she was going to beat the living daylights out of the blue-haired boy in front of her if he said one more nasty thing like that. "Who else was worried about me?" She couldn't think of anyone who said they were worried and meant it.

"KRAD!"

Krad gave Risa a smirk. Then he completed his transformation, frightening Risa as she was forced to watch the wings burst from his back and his soft blue hair change to blonde. He let out a laugh as he said, "_**My Tamer, Satoshi-sama.**_"

Satoshi was dead. His secret had been blown.

"H-Hiwatari-kun?!" Risa asked between gasps.

She recognized this man standing before her. She had remembered so vividly the white winged man that saved her from falling to her death. However, she didn't recognize the face of the person in front of her. "Who are you?" she asked slowly, attempting fruitlessly to regain her composure.

"_**My name is Krad,**_" the man said with a hiss.

Risa stood frozen. She remembered that, while she had been captured by Argentine, he had told her that Kokuyoku, something he had wanted to become, was both Dark and another man named Krad. The same blonde man standing before her. "So you're...Dark-san's other half?" she asked, her hands clenched. She was in need of answers. "Why did you save me?"

Krad attempted to look serious, but her serious look gave him no strength. And he started laughing again. His hands were holding his sides, as if to prevent himself from falling apart at the seams. As he stopped laughing, briefly wiping tears from his eyes, he sighed and said, "_**Do I look like I'd want to save you, little girl?**_" His eyes had gone from funny to serious. "_**I had no hand in your rescue. It was all thanks to my little Tamer.**_"

Satoshi didn't want to listen anymore. He covered his ears in an attempt to block Krad's hateful voice out from his head. But Krad's voice was swirling around him. Then Satoshi had to watch as Krad took hold of Risa's chin. "_**Satoshi-sama was very worried about you,**_" he said with a slither in his voice. "_**As soon as he'd heard you were kidnapped by that despicable creature known as Argentine, he was willing to go to great lengths to get you back. He was even willing to transform into me, something he never wants to do."**_ He stressed "Never." "_**He was the one who saved you, and yet you gave your beloved DARK-SAN all the credit."**_

Risa growled. Satoshi was following suit. Neither one of them could listen to his lecture for another second. Risa pulled herself away from Krad with a spin. "_**Dark Mousy wasn't the one who saved you, Harada-san,"**_ Krad continued in a mocking manner. "_**He didn't even notice you while he was fighting Argentine. Your hero with wings that you refuse to look at was my Tamer.**_"

Risa didn't want to say a word or even look at Krad for another minute. She just wanted to find Dark and have him hold her and help her wake up from this nightmare. Her eyes remained focused on the blonde before her. "Leave me alone!" she said, her voice so firm even Satoshi was impressed. "I don't know what you're talking about, but if Hiwatari-kun was the one who saved me, then let him say it to my face!"

Satoshi stared at Risa through Krad's eyes. Meanwhile, Krad merely smirked. "_**You are such a fool,"**_ he said. "_**Again, you fail to see what's right in front of you. You don't even see how my master feels for you."**_

Satoshi started turning pink. Krad! "KRAD, don't you dare!"

"What are you talking about?" Risa asked. "I've hardly ever talked to him."  
"_**Must you talk to someone to fall in love with them?"**_ Krad said bluntly.

Oh, man.

At that moment, two teenagers were beet red. Krad just blew his master's feeling out of the water.

"What?" Risa asked, this time slowly.

Krad sighed. _**"Blind with selective-hearing,"**_ he announced. "_**I said, 'must you talk to someone to fall in love with them?' You of all people should know that there are other ways to fall in love with someone. You hadn't even spoken to Dark when you fell in love with him. My master, however, was a little more different. He's been thinking about you ever since he saved your little head from Argentine. You've been on his mind for days. One time, he even dreamt about you."**_

Talk about embarrassing. Of course Krad would know about the dream he had a few days after he and Daisuke rescued Risa. But even he didn't expect him to talk about it.

Krad then walked up to Risa and put his hands around her neck. "_**Sorry,"**_ he said, not meaning it in the slightest. "_**But, you see, if my master loves you, then he has a chance to get rid of me. And Dark Mousy has feelings for you as well. With you out of the way, I'll have total control of my master's body and Dark Mousy will be shattered."**_ A maniacal smirk creeped onto his face. "_**Two birds, with just one precious stone."**_

"KRAD!" Satoshi screamed, attempting to regain control of his body before Risa's life was extinguished.

* * *

Satoshi opened his eyes for a moment. His hands were no longer around Risa. In fact, Risa wasn't anywhere near him. He was on the ground, his entire body sweating from his battle with Krad. He didn't remember what had happened, but he didn't care. All he cared about was that Risa was far away from him. Safe and mostly sound. His eyes began to close as his phone began to ring. He didn't have the strength to reach for the phone that was so close to his hand. He fell asleep and nobody knew where he was.

* * *

Risa could feel Krad increase his hold around her neck. It was becoming increasingly difficult to breathe. She closed her eyes, slowly trying to open her mouth. "Please," she said softly. "Hiwatari-kun. Please."

Krad instantly felt a sharp pain run through his whole body. His Tamer was trying to regain control. Krad's grip on Risa's neck loosened just a bit. It was just a second, but that was all a shadowy figure needed to pull Risa from his grasp and make way for the trees, where Krad would be incapable of following.

"Who are you?" Risa coughed.

She could barely make note of the dark-blonde hair of her rescuer, who was holding her bridal-style. Gloved hands increased their hold around her arms. "Don't worry, Harada-san," he said softly. "You will be alright."

Risa turned a bit to see Satohi giving her a kind glance as he fell to the ground, having won his battle with Krad. She noticed he had said something, but she couldn't make it out. Her vision began to blur and she fainted.

* * *

**D.T.B: Okay. Like I said, I'm new at this. Sorry, Kathrin, but Krad's kinda the bad guy. Kinda. I'm having a hard time figuring out who's the actual bad guy now. And Risa had SO been asking for that lecture since volume 13! **

**Yes. Krad pointed out that Satoshi loves Risa. Don't fear though. This story is gonna be a while. Neither one of them will actually admit to it for a veeeeeery long time. Please review if you feel that this is either the dumbest thing you've read since Yukiru Sugisaki, or if it is something you'd wish to see continued. I would appreciate the knowledge.**


	2. Chapter 2

**D.T.B: I fear this one is slightly shorter and not to mention weird. If Risa acts out of character in this chap, feel free to kill either her or me. This chapter involves Risa learning the truth about the artworks, seeing as how nobody can exactly keep 'hush hush' anymore. Especially not after she nearly got killed. Please enjoy.**

* * *

Chapter 2

Telling Risa the Truth

* * *

Risa awoke, focusing her eyes on a white ceiling. For a moment, she had thought she was in the hospital, but a single face leaning over her own revealed that she was not. A young man, appearing about 16 years old, with almond skin and serious blue eyes. His shaggy blonde hair indicated it was her rescuer, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was that she recognized her rescuer now. "No!" she screamed, forgetting that her throat was slightly sore. "Get away from me, you creep!"

She grabbed the nearest vase and threw it at his head.

Her rescuer's name was Argentine. And he was a Hikari artwork. (Though she didn't know about the artwork bit.) In an attempt to give his true love, Quolia, a heart so she would be complete, he had kidnapped Risa, hoping that it would lure Dark out. However, this had failed and he turned to stone. Due to Satoshi repairing him, Argentine became the Niwa family's butler. (Again, Risa didn't know any of this.)

"Creep?" Argentine asked slowly.

His vocabulary was small when compared to his fellow servant, Towa no Shirube, or To-to, as she so frequently wanted to be called.

"Yeah, that's right. Creep!" Risa screamed. "Where'd you take me this time? Back to your stupid tower?!"

Argentine didn't answer for a moment. Instead, he bent down and picked up the pieces of the vases. They quickly reattached themselves together and the vase was made whole again. It was Argentine's special gift. He could put things back together again, no matter how badly broken it was. Risa had seen him do this once before, but it still caught her off-guard when she saw it in action.

He placed the vase back where she had first picked it up. "I would appreciate it if you didn't throw anything else at me," he said. "If the Mistress finds anything else broken, chances are she'll want me to repair it."

"The 'Mistress?'" Risa asked. She shook her head. "Wait a minute, where am I? Where did you take me? And who is this Mistress lady you're talking about?"

She then heard the pattering of feet down stairs. "Risa?!" she heard, quickly followed by Riku revealing herself from the hallway. She was still wearing the dress that she was wearing to the dance, but her red hair was undone and flying in all directions.

Riku, her elder twin sister, looked at Risa with tears of relief welling up in her eyes. The young red-head ran to her twin and hugged her sister with joy. "Risa!" she screamed with joy. "Niwa-kun! Risa's up!"

"Niwa-kun?" Risa asked. "Wait a minute, where are we, Riku?"

At that moment, Daisuke Niwa, Riku's boyfriend (And Tamer to Dark) entered the room, still wearing his own outfit, though his shirt was torn at the front, as if something had blown up in his pocket. Both Riku and Daisuke looked tired, as if they hadn't slept for a whole night. "Harada-san," Daisuke said happily. "You're alright. We were worried."

"Niwa-kun?" Risa asked. "What happened to your shirt? And where the heck am I?"

"You're at my house," Daisuke admitted. "Argentine brought you here after his walk."

"Hold up," Risa screamed. "You mean this creep works for your family?"

"Harada-san, you shouldn't raise your voice like that. You're lucky Argentine got to you when he did. If he hadn't, you might not be here."

The room became quiet for a moment. "What time is it.?"

"Seven AM," Riku announced.

They had school in an hour.

"What is going on?" Risa asked. "Why did Hiwatari-kun turn into that Krad-san? Why was he trying to kill me? And what was he saying about Hiwatari-kun saving me?!"

"What did you say about Hiwatari-kun?" a mature voice asked.

Both Kosuke and Emiko entered the room. Kosuke had spiky hair, much like his son, but black instead of red. As usual, he was wearing his long-sleeved sweater. Emiko had short red hair and was wearing a knee-length dress; a personal preference. However, instead of their usual happy, or at least content, looks on their faces, Kosuke and Emiko were looking incredibly serious, as if they were solving a mystery. "Kosuke-san," Risa said, a happy look crossing her face. "Emiko-san. Good to see you."

Then she quickly started coughing. She finally noticed that her throat was sore. Krad had a tight grip on her neck before he let her go. Emiko gave her a drink of water. "Take it easy, Risa-chan," she said. Her expression clearly read worry.

Risa accepted the water and drank it slowly. "Now," Emiko continued, "please explain what happened last night. Argentine only said, 'I believe I rescued a damsel in distress.'"

Risa slowly explained everything that transpired between her and Krad. She left absolutely nothing out. She even nearly did quotation marks with her fingers to get her point across. When her story was complete, Daisuke was dumbstruck. Dark, on the other hand, was silently fuming. He didn't really like Satoshi, but that story just gave him another reason on his already long list. "I see," Kosuke said as the story was complete, his fingers placed on his chin. "So Krad said all those things."

"What is Krad-san?" Risa asked. "After everything that happened last night, I deserve to know."

Riku and Daisuke lowered their heads. Just last night, Daisuke had slowly, and incredibly reluctantly, explained the Hikari/Niwa curse to Riku. While she was stunned to find that her love and Risa's were one in the same, she still loved Daisuke regardless, and even asked what she could do to help. But halfway into the story, Daisuke could tell that they were not going to be as fortunate with Risa.

* * *

Risa kept a varying expression on her face for the whole story, not once choosing to speak up. When Kosuke mentioned Dark, her face would light up, but when he mentioned Krad, it was as if someone dumped a bucket of cold water over her head. And when he mentioned either Daisuke or Satoshi, she would remain indifferent. But when Kosuke finally reached the point that Krad had been talking about, Risa cracked. Apparently, Kosuke had given Satoshi a ring about a week prior to Daisuke and Satoshi's rescue attempt. The ring, which was the only one of its kind, would allow Satoshi to control his "Shadow," but just that one time. It was because of the ring that Satoshi had chosen to wear that Risa was still alive when she fell off the tower. (Argentine frequently apologized for putting her in such danger when that was brought up. He did so with a swift butler-like bow.) "Satoshi couldn't activate that ring unless the conditions were met," Kosuke said. "Those conditions were that he had to use the ring for his Sacred Maiden, the one that he loved more than anything else. And he had to be determined to protect you no matter what."

"Then..." Risa said slowly.

"When Krad said that Satoshi had loved you," Kosuke said, "he wasn't lying. If the ring worked, then that means that he did it to protect you. Because your his Sacred Maiden, or rather, the one he loves more than anything else."

Riku looked at her sister with a sad expression. She knew this was hard for Risa, but she had asked for answers. So she got them.

It took a few moments for Risa to digest this new information, but she finally stood up and said, "Well then, I'd better get ready for school. After all, if Hiwatari-kun did save me at the tower, then it's only natural that I thank him, right?"

Daisuke smiled. It was soothing to see this side of Risa. The side of her that never let anything pull her down. "Uh, Risa," Riku said. "It's good that you want to thank Hiwatari-kun, but unless we want to answer a bunch of questions, we have to go home and get our uniforms."

Riku quickly pointed to their dresses. Risa realized what she was talking about. There was no way that they could get back home, get their uniforms and still make it to school in time. "If I may be of assistance," Argentine quickly announced.

The twins looked at Argentine. He was holding their uniforms. "I was ordered to retrieve your uniforms in the event that something like this occurred."

Risa accepted her uniform graciously. Then she hugged him. "Arigato, Argentine," she said.

Argentine was confused and blushing. The last person who had hugged him was Emiko prior to him becoming their butler, though it was more of a tackle than a hug. But he accepted Risa's warm hug nonetheless.

The twins were dressed and followed Daisuke to school. Risa more eager to school than either Riku or Daisuke. She was still confused about the whole Krad and Dark thing, and it hurt her to find out that the person she loved was actually the one Riku loved. (Technically, he's part of Daisuke.) But she also needed to talk to Satoshi. She still had questions, and he had the answers.

* * *

The three of them sat down at their chairs, all exhausted during their attempt to beat the school bell. As they regained their breaths, they couldn't help but notice that Satoshi was nowhere to be seen. Even if Krad gave him a hard night, he was never one to be late. In fact, he was usually the first one there.

The teacher held out her book of students. "Hiwatari is absent today," she announced. "His father called and said he wasn't feeling too good."

Daisuke, Riku, and Risa had the same worried look plastered onto their faces. Satoshi? Not feeling well? What if that wasn't the case? What if it was something worse? And what if it went by the name of Krad?

* * *

**D.T.B: Little longer than I thought it would be actually. Funny. SO! Goes without saying, I like Argentine. Anybody dare insult him shall get a very nasty water dragon sent in their direction.**

**Next chapter: They find out the reason for Satoshi's absence, learn a few things about Kei Hiwatari, and learn a startling revelation about Satoshi's family tree. What kind of revelation? Hmmm. I'm not gonna tell you that. You wanna know? You'll have to read. Next update might take a little while, 'cause I think it needs a little rewriting to make sense. Look forward to it regardless. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**D.T.B: This actually didn't need as much of a rewrite as I thought. So prepare for a couple of shockers. I'll explain why at the end.**

* * *

Chapter 3

Hiwatari Hospitalized

* * *

The twins and Daisuke didn't want to wait for school to be over to go check on Satoshi. They were too worried, Daisuke especially. When he'd last seen Satoshi, he looked tired beyond compare. Even in Satoshi's standards, he looked sick. His skin had been paler than usual and his glasses were lost somewhere prior to him meeting up with him. Also, his left hand looked stiff, like someone had cut it deeply. And then he's absent for school? To heck with lessons. Satoshi might be in the hospital or something!

As soon as the class was dismissed, the three of them ran as fast as they could, Daisuke up front, straight to Satoshi's apartment. Daisuke had been there once before, and he remembered the way there like the back of his hand. They made their way to Satoshi's apartment building within an hour. They saw his door opened and their hearts skipped a beat. "Hiwatari-kun," Daisuke said.

"Why's his door opened up like that?" Risa asked. She didn't want to admit it, but she was worried.

Riku then walked ahead of them. "Come on," she said, giving them a quick motion.

The three of them opened the door a little more and saw his room untouched, though still messy for a teenager's apartment. "Dark, what do you think happened to Hiwatari-kun?" Daisuke asked to the Kaito in his head.

"_I don't know,"_ Dark answered. "_Check his phone. Maybe there's a message or something."_

"I can't do that, it's rude," Daisuke objected.

Dark gave Daisuke a deadly stare. "_You said you wanted to help Hiwatari, right? Then check his stupid phone. It's not invading his privacy if you're simply checking any messages that may be on it."_

Their argument went on for a little longer until Dark finally won with, "_You call him your friend, don't ya? So check the stupid phone!"_

Daisuke sighed and walked up to the phone. Sure enough, there was indeed a message. He reluctantly hit the "play" button on his phone answering machine.

"_Satoshi?_" the caller asked. None of them recognized the caller. "_Satoshi, are you there? Satoshi!"_ The caller then hung up, leaving three very scared teens in the room with a beeping answering machine.

"Niwa-kun?" Riku asked. "Where do you think Hiwatari-kun is now?"

Daisuke didn't know how to answer that. Then Risa jumped up. "I remember!" She caused her sister and friend to jump along with her. "When Krad came, we were both near the building that was being used for the dance. Let's go there and see if we're lucky and someone is still there who knows where he might be."

Daisuke and Riku nodded in agreement.

They quickly made their way to where the party had been held the night before. Luck was on their side, because there was still a group of people who were stacking up the chairs from the dance. "Excuse me!" Riku yelled. "Was there a blue-haired boy here last night? It's really important."

A young woman with a ponytail looked at Riku. "I dunno, sweetie," she answered. "There was a bunch of kids last night. I didn't keep record."

"What she meant to ask was," Risa quickly said, "was there a boy found asleep or something by those trees over there?" She pointed to the patch of trees where she had caught Satoshi.

The woman looked up for a moment. "Well," she finally said, "now that you mention it, there was a man with a flashlight over there last night. He seemed to be looking for someone." She turned to one of her helpers. "Hey, what was the name that man gave us after he asked us to call the hospital?"

A man with shaggy hair stopped picking up boxes to answer. "Hiwa-something," he answered.

"Hiwatari?!" Risa asked hurriedly.

"Yeah, that's it," the man answered. "This guy in a suit just ran up to us and told us to call an ambulance. When we asked why, he didn't answer. 'Simply call an ambulance and make it fast,' was all he said."

"Thank you," Daisuke said with a bow. "Come on."

The three of them turned back and ran to the hospital.

* * *

By the time they had reached the doors of the hospital, they were tired and out of sorts. Their breathes came back to them slowly and unevenly, but Daisuke, at least, was able to walk (Closer to hobble) over to the front desk. "Excuse me," he said slowly, his breath ragged and uneven from running non-stop, "but is there a patient here by the name of Satoshi Hiwatari?"

The three of them mentally begged the nurse to give them a positive answer. She briefly looked through a clipboard with patient names listed in alphabetical order. They all held their breathes. "Yes, we do," the nurse replied.

They sighed with relief. "So where is he?" Daisuke asked. "Is he well enough to receive visitors?"

She pointed to her left. "He is in room 13, in that direction," she answered. (A.N. Oh, man. I gave Satoshi room number 13! XD )

"Arigato!" they all screamed.

They ran into the room, and sure enough, there was Satoshi, sleeping in a hospital bed. An oxygen mask was over his mouth, his breath fogging it up every now and then. His skin was pale and his eyes, though closed, gave him the appearance that he was in deep pain. Beside one of his hands that had been left outside his blanket was a tall man with neat black hair and dark eyes. He was wearing a sweater and was holding Satoshi's slightly cracked glasses. He looked worried for Satoshi. Terribly worried.

The man noticed their presence as soon as they stepped in the room, for he quickly turned around. He was wearing glasses nearly identical to Satoshi's. "Um, excuse us," Daisuke said. "We didn't know he already had someone visiting him."

"Who are you?" the man asked, revealing a soft, yet firm tone in his voice.

"We're friends of Hiwatari-kun's from school," Risa said. "I'm Risa, and this is my twin sister, Riku, and her boyfriend, Niwa-kun."

"Niwa?" the man repeated curiously. They gave him a nod. "I see. You're the Tamer to Dark."

Everybody jumped.

Dark frowned and growled. Who was this guy?

"My name is Kei Hiwatari," the man said. "I am Satoshi's adoptive father."

Daisuke gaped at him. Satoshi's father? No wonder he knew about Dark. After all, he had to handle Krad. "You're Hiwatari-kun's dad?" Riku asked.

"I am," Kei answered.

He turned back to Satoshi. The young, blue-haired teen was breathing slowly, but heavily. He looked as if a heavy weight was on his lungs and it was everything he could do to breathe properly. His injured hand would twitch once in a while, and whenever he did, Kei would soften his already somber gaze. "What happened to Hiwatari-kun?" Daisuke asked.

Risa was eager for an answer to that question. If she was responsible in any way, then she wanted to know.

Kei didn't look too ready to answer. "It's okay," Daisuke said. "Harada-san and Riku-san already know about the curse. Please, what happened to Hiwatari-kun?"

Knowing that the twins knew all about the curse, Kei sighed. "I don't exactly know what happened," he said, turning towards his son. "I had called his house when the dance had ended. But when he didn't answer, I called his cell phone, knowing he'd have it with him. When that didn't work, I assumed he was still at the dance area and that something had happened to him. So I drove over there and..."

Here he stopped. It looked like the story was becoming too personal to continue talking about it. "You found Hiwatari-kun on the ground unconscious, didn't you?" Risa asked.

Kei was shocked, but nodded. "Hiwatari-san," Risa continued. "Did him turning into that Krad-san have anything to do with him getting sick?"

"That's impressive, Harada-san," an adult voice said behind them.

They turned around. Kosuke stood in the doorway, holding some things in his hand. "That is absolutely correct," Kosuke continued.

"Ah, Kosuke-san," Kei said, a sign of relief coursing through his words.

"Kei-kun," Kosuke said. "Good to see you again. You're looking well."

Kei turned to his son yet again. "Better than Satoshi," he said.

Daisuke was confused. "You two know each other?" he asked.

"Oh, that's right," Kosuke said, rubbing the back of his spiky black hair. "This is your first time meeting Hiwatari-san, isn't it?"

The teens all nodded.

"Well, I met Hiwatari-san a few years back, back when I was working on the mystery of the Hikari/Niwa curse. He's a very good man...when he lets you look at him the right way."

"How'd you know he'd be here?" Risa asked curiously. She was always the curious one.

"He called me an hour after you three left for school," Kosuke revealed. "He told me about Satoshi, and wanted me to help."

They all turned to Kei, who confirmed what he said with a nod. "I haven't exactly been the best kind of parent to Satoshi," he said. "But if he's suffering like this, I at least want to ease it a little for him."

Kosuke smiled. "You've changed a bit, Kei-kun," he said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a black bangle. "Put this on his wrist," he said. "It should help ease the side-effects of Krad's transformation." (Made this thing up. If there is one, he'd be using it. Kinda.)

Kei solemnly accepted the bangle. Then he slowly placed it on Satoshi's thin wrist, being careful to not touch his injured hand.

"It will take a while before the effects show," Kosuke announced. "You may as well sit down, Kei-kun."

Kei nodded and pulled a chair up to Satoshi's bedside.

* * *

An hour had passed before Satoshi showed any signs of improvement. Riku had fallen asleep from running so hard, and Risa was close to following suit. Her eyes started to feel heavier than they should have and her head started to loll from one side to the other. Then she felt a brown coat draped over her shoulders. She snapped awake and saw Kei standing over her. "I'm sorry if I woke you," he said. "I just thought you wanted to get a little more comfortable."

He then started back for his seat. "Uh," went Risa. "Hiwatari-san?"

He turned. "What is it?"

"Why is it Hiwatari-kun doesn't ever talk about you?"

Silence.

"Because I haven't been his idea of a father," he finally answered. "I have pushed him to capture Dark and end this game between the two families. I'm sure, because of that, he's not too thrilled to talk about me in any way. In fact, you might even say he hates me."

Risa looked at Satoshi. "If he hates you," she said, "shouldn't you try and make him like you?"

Kei shook his head with a sad smile. "That would mostly likely make things worse."

"Why?" Risa's curiosity had yet to be sated.

Kei didn't answer. "Dad?" Daisuke asked. "What's happening to Hiwatari-kun?"

He pointed to his friend, who's wrist was enveloped in a yellow glow. It seemed to be coming from his bangle. Shortly after that, Satoshi let out a cough, and his breathing began to steady. With a light smile, Kosuke removed the bangle from his wrist, then allowed it to fade away. "It only worked this once," he said. "I'm sorry."

Kei didn't bother to respond to that. He didn't have to. Instead, he drew his attention to his son, who was starting to wake up.

Satoshi then opened his eyes slowly. Kei was leaning over Satoshi, making him the first person who welcomed him back to the world of the living. He wasn't happy to see him, that alone was evident on his face. But he 'smiled' nonetheless. "Hello, Father," he said slowly.

Risa sighed with relief. At least he was back to normal.

"Good morning, Satoshi," Kei said, going back to his carefree self that Satoshi had grown accustomed to seeing. "How are you feeling?"

Satoshi narrowed his eyes. He was in no mood for jokes from his step father. "What do you want?"

"We wanted to see if you were okay, Hiwatari-kun," Daisuke said happily.

Satoshi widened his eyes. "Niwa?" He looked a little longer. "Niwa!"

He sat up quicker than he should have and felt a sharp pain in his lungs. "What is going on here, Niwa?" He looked around. "What are all you people doing here?"

"Well, Daisuke was worried about you and I got a phone call saying you were at the hospital," Kosuke said. "So I decided to pay you a visit." He omitted the fact that the caller was Kei Hiwatari.

"I see," Satoshi said. He pulled off the oxygen mask that was on his face and placed it on his lap. "Sorry about worrying you all, but I'll be fine. Don't worry about it."

Risa looked at Satoshi carefully. His skin was a sickly pale instead of his normal, everyday, "Satoshi" pale. And his eyes still showed signs of fatigue. Yet here he was telling everybody he was fine and not to worry about him. The nerve! It was the perfect time to worry about him. "Are you sure you'll be okay, Hiwatari-kun?" Daisuke asked.

Even he was worried about him. Though that's not surprising. "I'll be fine. You don't have to worry about me, Niwa."

Satoshi was placing his glasses on his face. "Well then, Satoshi-kun," Kosuke said, "I guess we'll take our leave. You get some sleep."

Then they all walked out the door, leaving father and son with a very unwelcome air between them.

* * *

Risa stomped hard when she was out of the hospital. "The nerve!" she exclaimed, flailing her fists in the air in an attempt to calm herself. "Who does he think he is?! We searched all day, worried sick about him the whole time. Yet he has the nerve to say 'don't worry about it?' Ugh!"

"Stop it, Risa," Riku snapped. "If he doesn't want us worrying about him then that's his problem."

"But we should be worried about him," Risa complained. "And he should want us to be worried about him. Why is he talking like that?!"

"He told me last night," Daisuke said, stopping as he did so. "He said, 'I can't wait any longer.' Do you think he means that he's out of time?"

"It could very well be, Daisuke," Kosuke admitted. "When the battle between Niwa and Hikari begins, the Hikari is given a small amount of time to capture Dark before their life force wears out on them. And that small amount of time becomes smaller with each passing generation."

"What are you talking about?" Risa said curiously. "Are you saying he's going to die?" Neither Niwa answered her. Realizing she guessed right, she banged on Kosuke's chest as hard as any 14 year old could. "That's not fair! He hasn't had a chance to be happy! He deserves a chance!"

"Isn't there anything we can do for him?" Riku asked.

"I've been wondering that myself for months now," Daisuke admitted. "I still haven't found a way to help him."

"Actually," Kosuke admitted, "in Satoshi's case, there might just be a way."

"What?!" the middle school students asked.

"We have to find his sister."

* * *

**D.T.B: Oh, snap! Sato-chan's got a sister! XD You'll see her next chapter. Don't worry.**

**And Kei's actually a good guy now? Yeah, behold the reason I'm having a hard time finding the true bad guy! When he cut Satoshi's hand in one of the more recent chapters, he says, "I can't afford to lose to you." My thought is he was actually saying, "I can't afford to lose you," and Satoshi misheard him. (Either that, or the translation was wrong.) That might have started this actually. So! Look forward to the next chapter. And please, WELCOME HIS LITTLE SISTER! XD**


	4. Chapter 4

**D.T.B: I fear that this is a little too short a chapter. Sorry.**

**Oh! I decided to keep the title as "Truths" since that's what I'm going to be revealing throughout the story. Made more sense to me. Okay. I'm done. Enjoy the chap.**

* * *

Chapter 4

Satoshi's got a sister?

* * *

The middle school students were totally dumbstruck. "What?" Risa said stupidly. "I'm sorry, but could you repeat that?"

"Hiwatari-kun has a sister?" Daisuke asked.

"I doubt Satoshi knows that," Kosuke said. "Otherwise, he would be looking for her. He's probably the first Hikari to have another sibling."

"Then let's go find her!" Dasuke said. "Do we know her name?"

"I do," Kosuke said. "It's Aoi."

"You're certain?" Riku asked. Suddenly, the fear of Satoshi dying grabbed hold of her harder than it had before.

"I should," Kosuke said happily. "I was there when those two were born after all."

Again, they were dumbstruck. "What?" This time Daisuke was the one who asked.

Kosuke repeated what he said. That didn't seem to help pull the teens out of the silence they stuck themselves in. To assist, Kosuke pulled out that which he had been holding. It was a small picture of a hospital room. In it was a blue-haired mother and her two children, a boy and a girl, and their father. The husband had black hair and a big grin. The two children both had the mother's hair, but that's where the similarities stopped. One, the girl, was wide awake and looking at the camera with her wide brown eyes. The other, the boy, was sound asleep. "Ohmygosh!" Risa screamed, nearly breaking her sister's eardrums. "Who's the cute little baby?"

Riku and Daisuke sweatdropped. "Uh, Harada-san?" Daisuke asked slowly.

"What is it?" Risa asked.

"Um, I think the babies are Hiwatari-kun and his sister."

"Correct," Kosuke said. "I was the one who took that picture. Shortly afterwards, Rio Hikari, Satoshi's mother, told me their names. Satoshi, the older one, and Aoi, the younger one."

"So if we find his sister...?" Daisuke began to piece things together.

"Then we can help Hiwatari-kun?" Riku completed his sentence.

"Probably," Kosuke said. He looked pretty darn uncertain. "I can't promise anything certain, because a set of twins in the Hikari family has never happened before. And even if we find her, I can't say she'll help. I don't think she remembers Satoshi in the least."

"Well, we can't give up without trying first," Daisuke said.

Risa was the first to agree, followed by Riku. "We can ask To-to to find her. She's good at finding stuff, right?"

Kosuke looked at his son admirably. "That's a very good idea, Daisuke," he said. "We'll try that later today."

"Why not now?" Riku asked.

"Because you three still have school," Kosuke pointed out. "You ran off in between classes. I know you three are worried about Satoshi, but even he won't die before you get home."

The fact that he said, "even he won't die," worried Daisuke immeasurably. "Alright, Dad," he said. "But as soon as I get home, we have to check it out."

Kosuke agreed to it.

* * *

Risa, however, wasn't too keen on waiting. Right before the last two classes of the day began, the three of them had made it back to school and not one person knew that they had left in the first place. They had just barely avoided detention for that. Now Risa was looking towards Satoshi's empty desk, her fingers flicking her pencil on her desk. Her face was on the heel of her hand. Though she didn't like to appear bored, she was too upset to care.

When the bell had finally rung to signal the end of classes, Risa, Riku and Daisuke were out of the class room like a lightning bolt. "I'll see you guys later!" Daisuke said.

"Wait, Niwa-kun," Riku said, waving her hand towards her boyfriend. "I'm coming with you."

"You are?"

"Hiwatari-kun's my friend too, you know. I have to help in any way I can." Daisuke nodded happily. "You coming, Risa?" Riku turned to her sister, who had not moved an inch.

"Sorry, but I have something else to do," Risa said.

"Okay, Harada-san," Daisuke said, taking Riku's hand. After explaining Dark to her, they began to do that a lot. "See you when we get some news."

When Daisuke and Riku were out of eyeshot, Risa pumped her fist. "_Good,_" she thought. "_Now I can do my own investigation."_

* * *

Risa was now standing in front of Satoshi's apartment. "_I'm the girlfriend to the Phantom Thief Dark," _she thought. "_I have to be able to do something like this."_

With this crazy thought, she advanced to his door. It was still opened, just like they had left it when they started running.

She walked inside, carefully taking off her shoes, and started looking around. Riku would have yelled at her about doing something like that, so she had refused to tell her. And Daisuke would have wanted to accompany her, and she wanted to do this alone. "_So I can prove to Dark-san that he doesn't have to worry about my safety."_

Despite this thought, she had actually proven to him that she so frequently needed protection. For some reason or another, she was always ending up in dangerous situations that someone was stuck getting her out of. And most of the time, it was a white shadow with pale white wings.

After finding nothing in his living room, she made way to the kitchen. She made a mental note to teach Satoshi how to clean a room. Hardly a second went by when she had to be looking at her feet before taking a step. When she finally found the kitchen, she stopped. Satoshi didn't look like the type to need notes, and yet there was one taped to his refrigerator. Upon further inspection, she found that it wasn't even his handwriting. Someone else had been there before she did, and had left a note for Satoshi. It read:

_Dear Satoshi nii-san,_

_I don't think you know me._

_I only found out about your existence when I was a little girl._

_I am Aoi Hikari. And I am you little sister._

_Please meet me at the place where you can see the windmills at 6 PM._

_I want to meet you in person._

_I want to see if you truly look like our mother._

_Your little sister,_

_Aoi Hikari._

Risa gasped after reading it a second time. Satoshi did have a sister. And she wanted to meet him. But what if it was a trap? Satoshi couldn't meet her tonight anyway. He was still in the hospital! After much consideration, she finally decided to do something.

She was going to go in Satoshi's place.

* * *

**D.T.B: Yay. Risa's being an idiot again. Huff. So, next chapter, we get a mind-boggling revelation. Something so great, even the Phantom Thief Dark won't be able to take it.**

**Aoi: Until next time, everybody. I'm looking forward to actually meeting you. **


	5. Chapter 5

**D.T.B: Short chapter. BUT VITAL! Please enjoy.**

* * *

Chapter 5

Aoi Hikari

* * *

Five o'clock. No call from Daisuke about finding anything about Aoi. Lucky her. She hadn't told anybody about the note she found or what it said. She kept every little bit to herself. She didn't even tell her sister, who worried about stuff like this, that she was going to meet the so-called, "sister," and find out if she was the real deal.

Risa was standing in front of her full-body mirror, looking at herself closely. She was wearing a white shirt with a cross design on the back and was wearing the collar upwards. Risa had 'borrowed' some of Satoshi's clothes from his house so as to make this Aoi person truly believe she is Satoshi. She even hid her hair under a baseball cap. She silently hoped that Satoshi liked caps, though she had never seen him wear one.

Five o-five. She ran down the stairs quickly. She didn't want anybody to know what she was doing. If anybody, most of all Riku, found out, they'd never let her do it. She opened the door softly and made way for the fountain with the great view of the windmills.

She made it to the location just before six o'clock. As she attempted to regain her breath, she saw a person looking at the windmills. Because of the light the person was standing under, Risa was fully capable of seeing the person. It was a girl with long blue hair tied in a loose ponytail. She was wearing a green sleeveless shirt with a white collar and a pair of khaki shorts and boots. "_Who is this girl?_" Risa thought. "_Could she possibly be Aoi-san?"_

She shook her head and thought, "no." She finally reached the conclusion that whoever left that note was just pulling a prank on Satoshi and started to leave when she felt a sneeze coming on. She tried holding it, but to her, doing that was just as hard as staying out in the snow without a coat. She sneezed, alerting the young blue-haired girl. "Nii-san?" she mumbled.

The young girl turned around. Risa finally got a good look at her face. Although she had brown eyes, this girl reminded Risa of the time when Satoshi was dressed as a girl and fell into the trap with her. Even the bangs covering her forehead reminded her of the brunette wig.

The girl's brown eyes started to grow wider. "Nii-san, is that you?" she said, sounding more hopeful with each word.

Risa was careful not to let the girl see her. "Yes," she said, trying her best to sound like Satoshi. Though she won't admit it, she sounded closer to Riku than to Satoshi. "And you are?"

The girl than ran over to Risa. "Nii-san!" She jumped up and hugged Risa to oblivion.

Then she stopped.

Then she moved away.

Risa's cap had fallen off, blowing her cover in an instant. "You're not Nii-san," she said, giving Risa the famed Satoshi Death Glare.

It was slowly creeping her out. The girl before her HAD to be related to Satoshi. "Uh, I'm Risa Harada," she finally said. "And you are?"

"My name is of no concern of yours," the girl said. "Have you seen my brother?"

Risa was in a bind. She was mentally begging Riku to show up and save her rear like she had done before. The girl then put a picture up at Risa's face. It was a picture of a blue-haired woman and her son, both dressed warmly. The blue-haired boy was holding a kitten and had a big grin on his face. Not the Satoshi she knows. "This is the most recent picture I have of my brother," the girl said. "My uncle sent it to me when I was six. Please, tell me you've seen him. He should go by the name of Hiwatari."

"Y-You mean Hiwatari-kun?"

"That's him!" the girl said. "Satoshi Hiwatari! Do you know where he is? You obviously know him if you were trying to impersonate him."

Yep, they're related.

Risa simply couldn't take it anymore. "Rikkuu! Help meeee!"

The girl looked at Risa curiously. "Who are you calling for, Harada-san?" she asked.

Again, saying something Satoshi would say, in the very way Satoshi would say it. This only worried Risa even more.

Luckily for her, help finally arrived. "It would appear Towa no Shirube was right," they heard someone say. "Harada-san would be in the middle of the trouble."

Argentine was standing before her, now wearing his jacket, pants and gloves from when he first met her. "Argentine-kun?" Risa asked.

The young girl stared at Argentine. "No way," she said. "Is that really Argentine? One of the incomplete Hikari artworks?"

"I am," Argentine replied. "I take it you are Aoi Hikari-san?"

"I am," the girl replied back, answering him with a deep voice. "What are you doing out of your tower?"

"My new creator repaired me," Argentine answered, making a fist with his left hand a couple of times.

"Your new creator?" Aoi asked slowly.

"Satoshi repaired him," Risa heard yet another voice say. A very deep voice.

Daisuke, Riku, and Kosuke revealed themselves from behind the fountain. "Your brother is a very gifted Hikari, Aoi-chan," Kosuke continued.

"Kosuke-san!" Risa said happily. "Niwa-kun! Riku!"

"What do you think you're doing, Risa?" Riku asked, in no mood for any of her sister's theatrics. "What are you wearing anyway?"

Risa had to explain the whole thing. The note she had found, what it said, and what she had decided to do.

Dark mumbled in Daisuke's head. "_If this is her idea of helping, it failed,_" he said.

Good thing Daisuke is the only one who could hear him say that. "So, you're Hikari-san?" Daisuke asked.

Aoi wasn't listening. She was looking at Kosuke with surprise. "Hello again, Aoi-chan," Kosuke said lovingly.

"Dad," Daisuke said, "you know her?"

Aoi took a step forward. Then she ran over to Kosuke and hugged his neck. "Uncle Kosuke!" she screeched. "I didn't think I'd see you again so soon!"

"Uncle?!" Daisuke asked worriedly. He hoped she didn't mean what he thought she meant.

But Kosuke answered. "Daisuke, this is Aoi Hikari. She and Satoshi are...how do I put this?"

"Oh, Uncle, you're always so shy," Aoi said. She skipped up to Daisuke and took his hands. "I'm Aoi," she said. "And it's a pleasure to meet you at last, cousin!"

Daisuke didn't know how to register that. He began to mumble some incoherent words before passing out.

* * *

**D.T.B: [Insert review here.] XD**

**Aoi: Yay! I got to meet my cousin! Thank you.**

**D.T.B: Next chapter, we get to see a little more of the Past of the Hikari Twins. Look forward to it. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**D.T.B: [creeps out of hiding] Am I late? O-Okay, please read the chapter. Then kill me.**

* * *

Chapter 6

Cousins

* * *

Daisuke was able to regain consciousness after a few hours. He was laying down on the bench that had been placed against the fountain. A wet cloth was placed on his forehead. "What happened?" he asked.

"_'Bout time you woke up, Dai," _Dark said. At least he was still okay. "_You fainted after you heard Aoi call you 'cousin.'"_

Daisuke almost fainted again. "She really called me cousin, didn't she?" he asked.

"_Yeah, she did. What of it?"_

"Don't you know what that means?"

"_Not really."_

"If Hikari-san is my cousin, then that means Hiwatari-kun is my cousin too! Now do you get it?"

_"__Yeah, a little. But hey, that simply means you finally made sense of that feeling you said you had when you were around Satoshi. Remember? You said you felt close to him even though the two of you were so different."_

Daisuke understood what Dark was saying. "You've known this whole time, didn't you?"

"_What? That Hiwatari was your cousin? Yeah, I've known for a long time."_

"Define 'long time.'"

"_Since your father told me after you passed out."_

"That's not long at all!"

Dark covered his ears.

"Are you and Dark finished conversing?" Aoi asked. Her face looked slightly serious, but also apologetic.

"Yeah," Daisuke admitted.

Aoi then bowed. "Sorry about scaring you like that!" she said. "I thought you knew about it, so I just shot my mouth off. I'm really sorry."

"That's okay, Hikari-san," Daisuke said. "I just wasn't prepared for that, that's all-"

"Please, don't call me Hikari-san," Aoi said, quickly taking his hands again. "If you must use that honorific, please use my first name. After all, we're cousins, aren't we?"

"Okay, Aoi-san," Daisuke said.

Aoi giggled. "Good to hear," she said, pulling her cousin up from the bench. "Let's get you home. My dad is meeting there with your dad. We've got a lot of catching up to do!"

* * *

Aoi practically pulled Daisuke to his house, saying nothing the whole time. Though the grin on her face that stretched from one cheek to the other clearly said she was happy to know her cousin. She opened the door and said, "I've brought him back!"

In the room was the Harada twins, (No surprise there.) Emiko, her father, Daiki, and Kosuke and another black haired man. Like Kosuke, he also had spiky hair, but his eyes were just a tad more serious. He was wearing a simple black t-shirt and grey army pants. Like Aoi, he was wearing boots.

The man stood up and walked to Daisuke. "So, am I correct in assuming you are the Niwa-kun I've been hearing so much about? The Tamer to Dark Mousy?"

"Uh, yes sir," Daisuke said.

Dark grumbled. "_How does he know about me?"_

"Rio told me a great many things about the curse," the man said. "My name is Akira Hanashiro. I am Satoshi and Aoi's father. I'm also Kosuke's older brother."

"Hanashiro?" Daisuke repeated. "Not Hikari?"

"I prefer to go by Hanashiro," Akira said.

"Yeah," Aoi said. "After me and Satoshi Nii-san were separated, I was raised under Dad's name while Satoshi was raised under Mom's maiden name. I only used Hikari to convince Nii-san that I meant what I was saying."

"Separated?" Daisuke repeated again. "Why?"

Akira turned to Kosuke. "You really haven't told him anything, have you, Kosuke?"

"Well, I wasn't sure when to bring it up," Kosuke defended. "Besides, I knew you were going to show up eventually and it was easier to talk for you to talk about Rio than it was for me."

"You didn't have to bring Rio up to tell Daisuke that he and Satoshi were cousins," Akira snapped.

"Well I couldn't exactly say, 'Oh yeah, you have a cousin and he's the same kid who's trying to capture Dark.'"

Akira rubbed his forehead. "No, I don't suppose you could."

Daisuke raised his hand. "Um, excuse me, but could you probably explain what you're talking about? I'm afraid I'm having a hard time following you."

"Of course," Akira agreed. "Take a seat. I'm sure you have a bunch of questions."

"I know when I found out that I had a brother, I had a zillion questions," Aoi said. She pulled on Daisuke's arm. "Come on, I won't bite you."

"No but whatever's under that trap you're about to step on might," Daisuke said, promptly grabbing Aoi and jumping over the trap. It was an alligator in a small but deep pool of water.

Aoi was trembling from head to toe, meanwhile Daisuke was merely sighing from his mother's latest trap. "Mom, we really need to talk about these traps you set up," he mumbled.

"Don't worry, Dai-chan," Emiko said. "That's the only trap. I turned the others off when I found we were going to have company."

"That's good to hear," Daisuke said.

After springing another trap, he found his mother had been lying to him. Luckily for him, this trap was actually a simple one: a large bucket of water hanging over the living room door. Argenting held out a towel and a pair of pajamas. "Would you like to change, Daisuke-sama?" he asked.

"Arigato, Argentine," he said slowly, accepting the articles of clothing he had in his hands. "But please, don't call me 'Daisuke-sama.' It makes me feel weird."

Riku giggled. "Well, you don't have to worry about taking a bath tonight," she teased.

* * *

After Daisuke had gotten dressed, he sat down with his family. He was sitting in between Riku and Aoi. This didn't help his condition, as sitting next to Riku made his heart pound and Dark had been hinting that Aoi was pretty. "Well," Akira said, sitting next to his brother and sister-in-law, "before we begin, I'd like to say this. Dark. You so much as put one finger on my daughter, and that finger will be broken before you know it."

Dark gulped.

"I'm not like my brother. I'm not as kind."

"_Remind me to never get on this guy's bad side," _Dark said. The look on Akira's face was worse than Satoshi's when he's in serious-hunting-Dark-mode.

"Maybe you won't have to worry about it if you simply leave Aoi-san alone," Daisuke said back. (He did so in his mind. That's why it's underlined.)

"Dark's promised to leave her alone," Daisuke said.

Akira seemed relieved. "Good. Then let's begin. Is there anything that you want to ask me?"

"Well, I am curious as to what Aoi-san had meant when she said that the two of them were separated," Daisuke admitted.

Akira lowered his head. Then he pulled out a picture and showed it to Daisuke. It was nearly identical to the picture that Kosuke had shown them, the only difference being that Kosuke was the one in the picture, and he was holding Satoshi while Rio was holding Aoi. (The two of them took turns taking the pictures so they could both be in the pictures.)

"Aoi and Satoshi are twins," he said. "I'm sure Kosuke at least explained that much to you." Daisuke nodded. "Well, in a case of twins, it would seem that the one born first would be the one to become the Tamer of either Dark or Krad. Following me so far?" Again, Daisuke nodded. "Satoshi was born into this world first, so he was to hold Krad."

"How were you able to figure that out so early on?" Daisuke asked.

"Nii-san has low blood pressure," Aoi said. "That's the telltale sign that you're a Tamer of the Hikaris."

"After a few months, Rio and I decided that it would be best for the twins if we separated them until they were older. In order to better protect them. So Rio, the former Tamer to Krad, took care of Satoshi, while I took care of Aoi. That's what she meant when she said, 'separated.' Anything else?"

"Didn't you ever try to talk with Hiwatari-kun?"

"Any contact we had with Satoshi was strictly through Kosuke, and he only saw him once or twice before coming back to be with you."

Akira pulled out another picture. It was the picture that Aoi had shown Risa. "That's the last picture Kosuke was ever able to send us of Rio and Satoshi."

Aoi was holding the picture affectionately. "Mom died a year later."

"I'm sorry," Daisuke said.

Aoi looked like she wanted to say, "Don't be," but she also looked ready to cry.

"Hanashiro-san?" Daisuke asked. "I have one more question. Why did you come here? Was it to see Hiwatari-kun?"

"I aim to do much more than that," Akira said. "I want to help Satoshi break free from his curse. I've lost a wife to that curse. I'm not about to lose a son."

Daisuke smiled.

"Do you have any idea about helping him?" Risa asked.

"A few," Akira admitted. He was smiling, but it was more of a knowing smile. "Do you happen to know where he is, Harada-san?"

"In the hospital," Risa said.

Aoi was up like a rocket. "Nii-san is in the hospital?!" she screamed. "Is that why he didn't meet up with me tonight?!"

Risa nodded vigorously. Then Aoi began to shake her. "Is he gonna be okay?!"

"Riku! Help me!"

Aoi then let her go. "Sorry," Aoi said, rubbing her teary eyes. "I was just so worried about him."

"Well, you two can see him tomorrow," Kosuke said. "He's going to be released after school.

Aoi stopped herself from screaming with joy. Risa had already covered her ears to avoid deafness and sighed with relief. "That's good to hear, Kosuke," Akira said. "Would you take us to his hospital room tomorrow? For us, the sooner the better."

Kosuke nodded his agreement.

* * *

For that night, Daisuke's house was filled with welcomed and unwelcome guests alike. The Harada sisters were requested to remain at the Niwa house for the night because it was late. Emiko had called their mother to inform her of the situation. Naturally she left out any "unnecessary" parts. Aoi and her father, Akira, slept downstairs on the couches. One of them had been unfolded so Aoi slept more peacefully. Unlike her father, she had yet to get used to sleeping on a couch.

Daisuke's alarm clock went off like a fire alarm that morning. He quickly turned it off before dodging yet another trap his mother "conveniently" forgot to turn off. It's possible that his room didn't count in the "remove-the-traps" list that Emiko had on the off-chance that company arrived. The one trap he had to avoid that morning was a blowtorch that she somehow placed in his wall followed by a banana peel where he usually placed his feet. "Get out of bed alive, check," Daisuke said as he put on his school clothes.

"_I really didn't think Emiko was going to put that there," _Dark said. "_Good luck getting out of your house today."_

Daisuke approached his bedroom door. "Oh, Dark," he said. "It almost sounds like you think she's trying to kill me."

He nearly grabbed his doorknob when he realized something. Emiko had replaced the knobs when he was asleep, giving him a spiky doorknob that would leave his hand bleeding for weeks. The spikes were painted the same color as the door, so they were cleverly hidden. So instead of pulling on his doorknob, he instead put his hand through the small, well-covered hole in his door and turned the doorknob on the outside.

After avoiding banana peels (which had been conveniently painted brown to blend in with the stairs.) Daisuke was able to make it to the kitchen and sit down. He looked at his chair briefly before deeming it sitting-safe. "Morning," he said, sighing with relief at another job well done.

"Good morning, Dai-chan," Emiko said, turning from her work in the kitchen. "Nice work today."

"Shouldn't we move the banana peels?" Daisuke asked. "Chances are Riku-san and Harada-san might slip on them."

"Oh, don't worry," Emiko assured. "They're already awake. In fact, they came downstairs before I put the peels on the stairway."

"Oh, really?" Daisuke said with a smile. "Where are they?"

"Morning, Niwa-kun," Riku said, giving Daisuke a quick peck on the cheek. "Risa left early with your dad to accompany Aoi-san and Hanashiro-san to the hospital."

"Really? Harada-san did?"

"Yep." Riku placed her finger on her lower lip and looked up at the ceiling. "I think she felt a little responsible for Hiwatari-kun getting put in there in the first place."

"Think she'll make it to school?"

"Mmmhmm," went Riku with a nod. "She promised that she would."

Daisuke sighed and began to eat his food. It didn't take him long to notice yet another trap, this time in his meal. "MOM!" he screamed. "Since when does a mother put spiders in her son's food?!" (I'm more than likely overdoing it, but she's Emiko.)

* * *

"It's this way," Risa said, giving Aoi and Akira directions to Satoshi's room.

Aoi was wearing a long-sleeved, high-collared shirt with a flower embroidered on her left shoulder. It would appear that the twins shared a sense of style. "I'm so nervous," she said, rubbing her hands together to hide the fact that she was trembling. "Do you think he'll be happy to see us?"

"I don't know," Kosuke admitted. "He'll probably be relieved to see that he still has a family, but he'll also probably push you away to avoid hurting you."

"Well, if he tries to push me away, I'll give him a big bear hug," Aoi promised herself.

Both Kosuke and Akira shared the same look of confusion. "_She's only going to get in trouble,"_ the brothers thought.

Naturally they didn't say this to her, as they had found Satoshi's room.

"Hiwatari-kun?" Risa asked slowly, knocking on his door.

"You may come in, Harada-san," Satoshi answered.

Risa slowly opened the door. Satoshi was just finishing buttoning a light blue dress shirt. He had more color in his face, but still looked severely haggard from the dance. He turned to her as he put on his glasses. "Is there something you need, Harada-san?" he asked, giving his glasses a quick poke.

"Um, someone wants to meet you," Risa said slowly.

She backed away to allow Akira and Aoi walk through the door.

Satoshi tucked his shirt into his pants. "Hello," he said slowly. "Is there something you need?"

Aoi started crying tears of joy. "Nii-san," she said, gaining Satoshi's attention quickly.

"Nii-san?" Satoshi asked in disbelief. For a moment, he was going to put it off as a lame joke, but her eyes said she was quite serious. "I'm sorry, but I don't know you. And from what I know, I'm an only child."

Akira was taking a more subtle approach. He walked up to Satoshi and offered his hand. "I am Akira Hanashiro," he said. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Satoshi."

Satoshi accepted the handshake. Akira noted that Satoshi's skin was still very cold. "When I last saw you face to face, you were only a few months old." He gave Satoshi a hug. "It's good to actually hold you again. You've grown up so much."

Satoshi began to piece together what the man before him was saying. "Do you mean...you're my father?" he asked slowly.

Akira let him go and nodded. Then he turned to Aoi. "Satoshi, I want you to meet your twin sister, Aoi."

Aoi could no longer sit still. She ran over to Satoshi and gave him the bear hug she had promised to give. "Sato-chan!" she said happily.

Satoshi stumbled under his sister's weight and force. He wanted to hug her back, but didn't. He had yet to fully believe that he had a father who loved him and a twin sister. But he had yet to fully push them away. Krad was still sleeping from his last inner battle during the dance, so there was no harm in being with them for a while.

Kosuke looked at the family affectionately. Then he and Risa made their escape. But Aoi took note of the look that Risa gave Satoshi before she left.

* * *

**D.T.B: Yay! Satoshi met his sister! What do you think he's gonna do? Well, you'll have to find out in the next chapter. Please leave a review.**

**Aoi: Why is my brother so mean?**

**D.T.B: Aoi-chan! That's just who he is!**

**Sirius: Well, they're gonna be a while.**


	7. Chapter 7

**D.T.B: I decided to change the rating from K plus to T because I realized that some of the future chapters might not be suitable for a K plus. If anybody believes otherwise, please tell me.**

* * *

Chapter 7

"I need some time."

* * *

Satoshi sat on the chair available in his hospital room. Before him stood his father and his twin sister. While he wanted to believe that the people before him truly were who they claimed to be, he felt that he shouldn't believe them in the least. If they were his family, then all the more reason to avoid them like the plague. He could feel his time running out and wasn't about to make a bond that was only going to be broken.

Akira leaned forward against his elbows. "You really do look like your mother," he said.

Satoshi's eyes widened. But he quickly covered it up and put back on his emotionless face. "I suppose you would know that," Satoshi said. "Any person who knew my mother would know that."

Akira chuckled. He knew that his son had yet to believe him. "I don't suppose I can do anything to convince you that we're telling the truth?"

"No," Satoshi answered, getting up from his chair to check himself out of the hospital. "If you are indeed my father and sister, then you should know why I don't want to get a connection with you."

"Because Krad's sucking up your life force and you're gonna die soon," Aoi said, standing up and placing her hands on her hips. "We know. That's why we're here, Nii-san."

"Please, stop calling me that," Satoshi said, a crack visible in his emotionless mask. "I don't want to be a brother right now. Please excuse me."

He made good on his escape and checked himself out of the hospital.

* * *

Aoi sat in Satoshi's hospital room. Her hands were folded in front of her as she mumbled to herself. "I thought he was going to be happy to see us," she said aloud. "Why did he act like that? I want to help break his curse, not keep him trapped in it."

"Well," Akira said, getting up from his seat, "we did kind of throw the news at his face. It makes sense that he needs some time to himself. We'll be a family again soon, I know it."

Aoi pulled out the picture of Satoshi and Rio. "He looked so happy," she said. "I didn't think he'd change that much."

"Your mother was like that too, Aoi," Akira said. "Before she met me, she was the mistress of indifference. She never went out with anybody, never looked at anybody, never talked to anybody. Satoshi will soften up in time. After all, he's her son."

Aoi smiled at her father's logic. After giving him a quick hug, they exited the hospital.

* * *

Satoshi opened the door to his apartment. Well, opened it more so that it had already been. He was amazed that nobody tried to rob him while he was in the hospital, as the door had been wide open and he had, once again, left several important things out in the open. He closed the door and leaned against it. "How stupid," he thought aloud. "I didn't think I'd get a visit like that."

He started picking up the books that he had left on the ground. They were mainly about Hikari artworks, the most recent one being Insomnia, the mirror that tried to take Daisuke's place in the real world.

That very same mirror had been destroyed thanks to Riku hitting it insanely hard with a metal rod. He shivered at the memory of Riku's face when she whacked the mirror. Though he didn't want to admit it, the antics of the Harada twins scared him. Especially Risa, who was unusually energetic when he spoke to her through the mirror.

He lifted one of the books and found the one thing that reminded him of his mother. A photo album she had made for him. He sat down with it in his hands. He had never grown attached to many things, but that one book was the one thing in the world that connected him to his past.

He opened the book slowly. Rio was a very determined mother, and had taken enough pictures of the two of them together to fill several books. But this album held his most cherished memories with his mother. The first picture was one from when he was a few months old. He had a pacifier in his mouth and his mother's glasses in his tiny hands. Rio had a fake smile plastered onto her face and she was holding Satoshi like any mother would. The next few pictures were of Satoshi starting to walk and Rio holding her hands out to him. Then one of when he was five years old. He was holding a novel that he had just finished reading and Rio took it as a 'congratulations' photo.

Satoshi thought back.

* * *

**"Mommy," five year old Satoshi said, holding onto his plush cat, a birthday present from when he was three.**

**"Yes, Satoshi?" Rio replied, turning her attention away from her book.**

**"Do I have a daddy like other kids do?" he asked. **

**Rio looked shocked but regained her composure. "Of course you have a daddy, Satoshi," she answered, picking up her five year old prodigy. **

**"Do I have a sibling?" he asked.**

**Rio looked more sly than shocked as she answered, "Maybe."**

* * *

Satoshi was now holding the last picture his mother was able to take. He was six years old, his smile still as big as ever. Rio was standing next to her son, a real smile on her face despite the impending danger that she was about go through.

The day before Krad awakened inside him.

* * *

**"Mom," Satoshi had said. He had a stomach ache and he didn't understand why it had happened. **

**"Yes, Satoshi?" Rio appeared out of the kitchen of their large house and took notice of Satoshi doubling over in pain.**

**He didn't speak to her. He didn't have to. His face did all the talking. His back felt like it was on fire, his insides felt like they were shifting this way and that. He barely heard him mother's scream when the dreaded white wings broke out of his back. "Ah, hello, my new Tamer," a voice rang in his head seconds before blacking out.**

**He awoke later on in the middle of a circle of feathers. Every move he made was painful and the back of his shirt had been blasted off. And his mother was unconscious on the floor. **

**He crawled forward and checked her pulse. It was faint, but it was there. Despite the pain in his back, he forced himself to get up and call an ambulance. But the pain in his back had yet to recede. He blacked out again before the ambulance arrived.**

**Satoshi awoke a second time, in a hospital bed, wondering where his mother was. "Mom?" he asked. **

**He turned and saw his mother on a bed beside him, wearing an oxygen mask. She opened her eyes and looked at him. "Satoshi," she said softly. Like it was too much to speak up.**

**"Mom?!" he asked, pushing himself out of bed and going to his mother's side. "Mom, are you okay?" He took her hand to show her she wasn't alone.**

**Rio brushed her hand against his face, brushing away the blue bangs that hung over his forehead. "I should be asking you that, honey," she said. **

**"What happened, Mom?" he asked. **

**"Remember the stories I used to tell you about my clan?" Rio asked. "About the white winged blonde who constantly tried to capture the Phantom Thief?" Satoshi nodded his little head. "Well, they were true. The white winged blonde is called Krad, and he exists within every firstborn of the Hikari family."**

**Satoshi's eyes widened. "Then...?"**

**"That's right," Rio said, a sad smile crossing her face. "He's inside you, Satoshi." She stroked his head again. "Be a good boy, okay? I'll be watching you."**

**Satoshi gasped. His mother closed her eyes slowly. "Mom?" A long "Beep" could be heard beside him. He may have been six years old, but he knew fully well what that meant. His mother was gone. "MOM!"**

* * *

Satoshi refused to let the tears flow down his face at the thought of that memory. He rubbed his face to wipe his mother's face from his mind and put the album down. "Come to think of it," he thought, "Mom never talked about my birth and never had a picture taken of that day. Could what they have been saying be true after all?"

"_If they are, don't you think I should say hello?_" Krad asked.

He had finally woken up. And he was once again attempting to take control of Satoshi's body. Satoshi fell off his chair and hit his head on the coffee table in front of him. But the pain in his head was nothing compared to the pain in the rest of his body. He was on the ground, writhing in agony, clutching his sides to prevent the homicidal angel from bursting out of his body. "Go away, Krad," he said, almost in a whimper. "I don't need you."

"_Ah, but you do, Satoshi-sama,"_ Krad said, taking hold of his Tamer's arms. "_You don't want to be alone in this world forever, do you?_"

"I would...much rather that...than letting you get what you want!" Satoshi screamed.

Just then, someone starting knocking at his door. Great. "_What do you know? Company. Maybe it's your twin sister coming to say hello. Want me to answer it, Satoshi-sama?"_

"No!" he said, shutting his eyes tightly as a last resort. "You stay away from her."

"_You're not arguing with me," _Krad pointed out._ "You want her to be your sister._"

Satoshi screamed as he felt the familiar pain from the wings erupting from his back. He was losing the fight. And someone was still banging on the door. "Satoshi?!" a voice called out.

It wasn't Akira. It most certainly wasn't Kei, who hardly paid any attention to his problems. (He does, but Satoshi doesn't know that.) But who was it? The pain was filling his ears, making it harder for him to hear the person's voice.

As he was surrounded by feathers, someone either kicked his door open or picked the lock. Either way, he opened the door and found Satoshi surrounded by white feathers, his hair starting to turn blonde. "Go away," Satoshi said softly. He didn't want Krad to go on a killing spree.

"_How funny. That's exactly what your mother said before she died._"

Satoshi opened his eyes wide. The pain in his body was beyond that he was used to. Never had Krad tried so hard to take control. 'Course, Satoshi had never been capable of holding him back for so long. His eyesight was starting to blur and he couldn't remember anything after that.

* * *

Satoshi awoke to see the ceiling of his bedroom. But how did he get there? Did he win against Krad? He started lifting himself up, but the pain in his back prevented him from doing much of anything. He lowered himself again and placed his arms over his face. He then felt a cloth against his forehead. Lifting the cloth up, he noticed a dab of blood on one side. Oh, yeah. He hit his head. He obviously must have hit it hard if it started to bleed. "You're up," a voice said.

Satoshi turned his head to see Kosuke looking down at him. He was sitting on a chair that he had pulled in from Satoshi's dining room. But nothing about him said he was hurt. Maybe Satoshi won after all. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I just felt like checking up on you," Kosuke said. "But when I got anxious, I broke down your door. Sorry about that."

"What happened?" Satoshi asked, taking the cloth off of his throbbing forehead.

"Krad was trying to take control again," Kosuke said. "He actually got it too but your battle with him tired him out."

Satoshi felt like smiling. "What happened after that?"

"When you came back, I noticed your head was bleeding, so I brought you into your room and took care of you."

"Arigato," Satoshi said softly.

Silence.

"How did it feel seeing your real family?"

Satoshi cringed slightly. "I don't have a real family."

"Satoshi," Kosuke said. "You do. You have a bigger family than you had thought. Akira Hanashiro, Aoi's father, is my brother."

Satoshi pushed himself out of his covers. "What are you talking about?!" Satoshi asked, moments before realizing that his headache only increased.

Kosuke placed his hands on Satoshi's shoulders. "I'm saying that you and Daisuke are cousins."

Satoshi stared at Kosuke with his widened eyes. "What?" This information did little to help his headache.

Kosuke sat down again. "I married into the Niwa family, but I did know your mother. I was there as best man at her wedding day and I was there when you and Aoi were born." Satoshi remained silent, curious as to what he saying. "I know that you never wanted to become too deeply connected with Daisuke," Kosuke continued, "but even you have to admit that things have improved since you and Daisuke became friends. And now, you have your sister who wants to get to know you and a real father too." Kosuke then got up and started to leave. "Whether or not you choose to be her brother is entirely your decision, but I personally think it will be a good thing for you. Just you. Krad is probably going to be asleep for a while."

Kosuke then left, leaving Satoshi to sleep on what he had said.

* * *

The next day was Saturday. No school. Satoshi didn't have an alarm to wake up to, but he chose to remain under his covers. He spent most of the day thinking. Krad was asleep, so there was little to distract him from his thoughts. Finally, he decided.

He got out of bed and noticed that he had no shirt. He obviously tore the back pretty badly. And he found, to his annoyance, that one of his shirts had been misplaced. So he made due with a simple blue t-shirt that he had folded in the back of his closet. Then he put on a new pair of jeans, his sneakers, and went out the door.

It didn't take Satoshi long to find who he was looking for. The message that had been left on his refrigerator rather plainly said where to look. He made his way to the fountain near the windmills. Just as he had thought, there was Aoi, leaning against the railing and staring out into the rising sun. "Aoi-san," Satoshi said after working up a great amount of courage.

She turned around. "Nii-san," she said happily. Then she remembered how he reacted. "Oh, you don't want to be close to me. Sorry."

"Actually, I wanted to get to know you better," Satoshi said. Aoi gasped and gaped at him. "I haven't had a real family since my mother...our mother...passed away. So I don't think I'll be the brother you want me to be. But I'd be willing to try." He stopped and looked at his twin sister's face. "Did I say something wrong, Aoi-san?"

Aoi had started crying. Then she ran up to him and hugged him again, nearly knocking off his cracked glasses. "Thank you, Satoshi," she said. "Thank you so much. I've wanted to have a big brother for the longest time."

This time, Satoshi accepted her hug. "So, can I ask you a question, Satoshi?"

"Uh, yeah." Satoshi said uneasily.

She took her brother's hands. "Who's your Sacred Maiden?"

Satoshi turned beet red and walked away, slowly starting to think that this was a very bad idea. "Oh, come on, Satoshi," Aoi whined. "What's her name? I know you've got one."

The whole time she was talking, Satoshi started to smile. "Well," he thought, "I've got a lot of work to do before I can be her big brother."

* * *

**D.T.B: No lectures on Satoshi being OOC, please. That's just how I chose to handle him in this chapter.**


	8. Chapter 8

**D.T.B: Next chapter is up. And guess what? For all those Takeshi fans, he's in here. Hopefully, I got him in character.**

* * *

Chapter 8

New Student

* * *

Monday came sooner than Satoshi had ever hoped for in his life. If anything, he learned over the weekend that his twin sister is a motor-mouthed tomboy who hated skirts and loved long-sleeved or no-sleeved shirts. Academically, she is a grade A student with incredibly high intelligence and could easily skip a few grades if she wanted to. She is currently a middle school student who is frequently transferring from one school to the next because her father is constantly moving.

His ears were ringing in sync with his alarm clock that morning. Aoi could talk for hours on end without having to worry about getting a glass of water or a sore throat. This included when she talked on the phone. Of the Hikari twins, she was definitely the chatterbox. He got dressed and left his apartment for school. He was unable to lock his door, as Kosuke had badly damaged the door when he was "getting anxious," but this did little to make Satoshi care. If someone looked at the wrong angle, you'd think the door was lock firmly and because of his lock, it was impossible to pick. Content with his work of art, as he so thought of it, he placed his key-card in his pocket and started for school.

Satoshi made it to school with little problems. He was fortunate to not be bombarded with his new sister's "talk bombs" that she so nicely refers to as topics of conversation. In fact, he hadn't even seen her the whole way to school. He didn't think about it then, but there was a reason she didn't show up.

* * *

Satoshi sat down in his chair and placed his bag on the hook that was attached to his desk. "Oi! Hiwatari-kun!" Daisuke said, waving his hand in the air of the crowded classroom.

Satoshi raised his hand in the air to show that he had noticed. Daisuke pushed his way to Satoshi, now revealed to be his cousin. "How are you feeling today, Hiwatari-kun?" He hadn't seen Satoshi since he last saw him in the hospital.

"I'm okay," Satoshi said, poking his glasses upwards. "You didn't have to worry about it."

"Sorry," Daisuke said, doing his trademark rubbing of the back of his head. "It's just Riku-san and Harada-san and I were really worried about you. You didn't even call to inform us how you were doing."

Satoshi didn't look at Daisuke when he answered. Instead, he focused his eyes on his book that he had brought with him. "Yeah, Aoi-chan has a habit of talking for hours on end. I haven't had much time to myself lately."

"Aoi-**chan**?" Daisuke asked uneasily. It was rare to hear Satoshi use such an honorific.

Satoshi had yet to inform Daisuke that he was trying to be more of a big brother to Aoi without alerting Krad of his feelings. (Satoshi using "chan" for anybody is unusual. He only said it because Aoi was almost always calling him "Sato-chan.") Fortunately, Satoshi also didn't notice Daisuke's uneasiness when he picked up on the honorific and the bell for classes to begin had rung, forcing Daisuke to sit down in his chair. (One or two chairs in front of Satoshi.) The teacher entered the room and made an announcement. "We will be having a transfer student today." She waved her hand, a simple motion to the student in the hallway that he or she may come in.

Satoshi, Daisuke, and the Harada twins were curious as to who the new student was. But what they weren't expecting was Aoi dressed in the male's uniform, her blue hair down to her hips, and a baseball cap placed backwards on her head. "Yo!" she said loudly, placing her fingers by her forehead. "I'm Aoi Hanashiro. Nice to meetcha."

Daisuke and Satoshi almost fell out of their seats from shock. Luckily, the most they had to suffer was picking up their textbook and glasses respectively. They could tell that Aoi was going to be the talk of the school for a long time, if she didn't land on the front page first. Daisuke could already picture it. "**Crazy Student At Azumano**" by Takeshi Seahara. "**Lunatic girl transfers to Middle School and chooses to wear boy's uniform.**"

* * *

During classes, it was relieving to hear that Aoi was actually pretty popular with her fellow classmates. That included Takeshi, who personally thought she was a beauty. Maybe it was Satoshi's brother instincts kicking in, but he found that seeing Takeshi attempt to flirt with Aoi to gain her affection was irritating. The reporter asked her a lot of questions about her life, which she answered truthfully. Satoshi should know, as he had listened to her whole life story over the course of the last few days. "Tell me, Aoi-san, do you have any siblings?" Takeshi asked.

If Satoshi had a pencil in his hand, it would have snapped in two. "Well, yes, I do, actually," Aoi said. "A twin."

"Oh, is she pretty too?" Takeshi asked. Satoshi turned red from embarrassment. According to Dark, Satoshi is very pretty when dressed as a girl.

Aoi laughed harder than Satoshi had ever heard her laugh. "I don't have an identical twin," she laughed. "I have a fraternal twin."

"Oh," Takeshi drawled. They still hadn't figured out that she meant "twin brother," not "twin sister." (A/N They don't figure it out until later.)

Satoshi was silently fuming due to Takeshi's obvious stupidity.

More questions were asked, and were equally answered by Aoi, mainly due to her patience. With all the people looking at her so carefully, it was amazing that not one person figured out that she and Satoshi were twins. Her face was a tad more feminine than his handsome one, but they did resemble one another. Mainly their blue hair. From what Satoshi had learned over the years, blue hair was a mutation or something. Having two kids in the same classroom with the **same** blue hair was a little too coincidental. Fortunately, for the most part, just about everybody failed to notice the face or hair similarities. But that didn't stop one person from pointing it out. "That is so funny! Did you know you look a lot like Hiwatari-kun!?"

The twins hearts skipped a beat. Blast it!

Luckily, Aoi was able to take control of the situation. "Who is this Hiwatart-kun you're talking about?" she asked with the best false grin she could plaster on her face. Satoshi was silently proud of her.

The girl who asked the question was astounded. "You don't know Hiwatari-kun?" she asked. "Why did you show up in this school if you don't know who Hiwatari-kun is?!"

"Well, I move around a lot. I couldn't care less who's got the fan club in any school."

Satoshi wanted to smile, but felt that would only lead to trouble. So instead, he sat in the back as he so often did and watched his sister from afar.

* * *

School had finally ended when Daisuke, the Hikari twins, (A/N I'll be calling Satoshi and Aoi that in the event that I need to group them together) and the Harada twins were finally able to speak alone. They were all outside the school, practically hiding next to one of the walls. "So, Aoi-san," Satoshi said, rubbing his eyes. He had a hard time understanding why she was wearing the men's uniform. "Why are you wearing the boy's uniform?"

"Yeah," Risa said. "Why are you? I mean, it looks cute on you, seeing as how you and Satoshi look so much alike, but what made you choose to wear that one?"

Aoi gave herself a quick look while Satoshi was fighting a blush after hearing Risa's words. "Well," Aoi said, giving herself a twirl on her toes, "I thought it would look better on me than that skirt."

"And why's that?" Riku asked.

Aoi did a motion that looked like she was pulling on an invisible skirt. "That skirt didn't even get near my knees," she said, a blush creeping onto her face. "There was no way on earth I was going to wear a skimpy skirt like that!"

The Harada twins looked down at their own skirts.

Then Aoi gave Satoshi a glance. Then she walked up to him. "What's wrong, Aoi-san?" Satoshi asked.

"What happened to your head?" she asked, sounding like a little girl.

Satoshi just realized that he had a bandage on his forehead. He had forgotten about the injury to his head that he had taken several days ago. Frankly, it was amazing that she just noticed it. He tried to think of a way out of the question. "I fell out of my bed a few days ago and hit my nightstand," he lied.

It seemed that Aoi could read his face, and could tell right away that he was lying. "What really happened?" she asked, her eyes growing unbearably narrow.

Even Daisuke cringed in fear at her eyes. Her death glare might actually be worse than Satoshi's when she was mad. Satoshi silently wanted to find a way out of this; to avoiding mentioning his "Krad-attack" in any way. "I'm going home," he quickly said, making his way through the girls that stood next to him.

"Oh, no you don't, Nii-san!" Aoi said, taking a firm hold of his sleeve. "Dad has thrown that line at people when he doesn't want to talk to them. So I know for a fact that you're hiding something from me. Don't even think about running away."

Satoshi's ears perked up. "Run away?" he asked, giving her the death glare as well. "I'm not running away!" He pulled his hand away from her and walked away.

Daisuke's face fell. "Dark, what should I do?"

"_Let him be,"_ Dark replied. "_We'll be seeing him tonight anyway. Have you forgotten? We have to go steal another artwork tonight."_

Daisuke started smiling at that thought. This artwork wasn't just any artwork. This time, they were stealing it for Satoshi.

* * *

**D.T.B: So, what do you think will happen in the next chapter? Is Satoshi going to show up and try to foil their plans? Is Krad? ...Well, not gonna tell you. Have to wait till next time. :D I know. I just tortured you. Sorry. Please review. And thank you for all the reviews so far. I think my story is really starting to get noticed.**


End file.
